The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1887-10-15


bodys :cr over a hundred years. asked for
bid. 2A7 amount against the property,
! including the legal costs, was tweney-three
/ hundred and eighty-four dollars Phipp5
| putthat in as bid, but remarked he didn't
want 1t at any price, and any one advancing
on that might have it,
''That leaves nothing for the widow" OBJ
served Foljambe.
Suppose you bid MORE then, on her ac-
COUNT said Phipps.
81 SHALL" replied Foljambe; ''thirty five
hundred dollarsn
us that your bid, Mr. Foljambei" in
| qured the sheriff.
THAT is my bid, sir"
So the farm was knocked down to him.
When we were coming away Foljambe said
to me:
"Coffey, you go past the Peabody Farm
on your way home. wish you'd stop and
tell Mrs. Peabody that the place has
brought over twelve hundred dollars more
than the debt, and she must take out let
tiers of administration. And tell her for
me not to think of moving. She can have
the house and the garden around it free of
rent. She's a shifty woman and with that
start she'll get along"
l felt that Foljambe's conduct was
| through an impulse of generosity which
he could well afford. But the general ver-
dict was that he was fool Had he bid
hundred over Phipps, or even two hundred,
it might have passed, but to throw away
absolutely throw away-twelve hundred
dollars! When they heard afterward that
he had given the widow life estate in the
house and garden, it was generally agreed
that he should have guardian over him
to save his property.
| To out hov - y
again by another astounding act of folly
The Ellomah Iron Works, about a mile
from Brantford, had exhausted the bed of
orethey had been working for over forty
years, and had to bring the crude material
some distance by rail and water. 1t began
to be question whether it would not pay
to build a new furnace near the source of
| supply and abandon the old one. Suddenly,
| however, a new ore bed was opened close
at hand. The forty-two acres of clayey hill
on the Peabody farm was found to cover
| heavy deposit of limonite. AS that ore gen
orally contains impurities only fitting it for
''cold short" iron, little attention was paid
| to it. But when the chemist of the COM
pany made three separate analyses and dis
covered the usual PHOSPHORUS was re-
placed by nearly three per cent. of mangan-
| ese oxide, the thing took another shape.
The company offered Foljambe handsome
royalty, which he at once declined. He
would sell outright or not at all. After
some chaffering and rough survey Of the
bed, they took all the farm but the Widows
five acres and paid 5000.
"A fool for luck,n was the general COM
ment. But the reputation OF Foljambe for
downright folly was at it's height when it
leaked out afterward that he had settled
$50, 80 dollars on Mrs. Peabody-that is,
the interest during life to her, and the
principal to her daughter afterward. No
word sufficed to express the wonder, con-
tempt and disgust at this act of folly
Old Eggs died about this time, and GAL
cheze offered me a share in the business if
/ could put in 5000 l had saved little
over half Of that by pinching and screwing,
but was puzzled about the rest. Foljambe
found it out, and gave me the money on my
note Some folks may think this folly on
his part, but did not. Neither did he, for
/ have paid it back long since.
When the Widow Peabody got her money
she sent Rebecca off to boarding-school, as
she could well afford to, and there the girl
remained for four years, barring visits
home at vacation. When she came back to
stay, she had grown into handsome, self
possessed young woman, and she was quite
| admired by the young fellows around. In
addition to good looks and good manners,
she won Id have nice sum in hard cash in
time-a good thing to add to young mans
family resources. But she was of do
nestle turn, stayed at home with her
mother, and rarely went abroad. No suitor
seemed to meet favor in her eyes, though
she had several.
During Rebecca's absence at school, Fol
jamie had been going along quietly and
people had ceased to talk of him; but
shortly after her return he broke out again.
One day, an old man in dusty suit and
boots that had been blackened week be-
fore, and who carried a small grp-sack,
got out at Brantford station and inquired
if the Widow Peabody lived at the old farm
yet We soon learned that he was the long
lost David Peabody who had come back
after all these years, appare ntly as poor as
"a church mouse, and doub less with intent
to sponge on the Widow Peabody He was
not so very old, either, but looked like a
man whom hard luck and hot climate had
dried up and wrinklel.
To our surprise he was made welcome by
the widow and Rebecca, and took up his
abode there He was a queer specimen.
After the dust of travel had been brushed
were of ordinary material and well worn
1t was evident that he was poor, but he
didn't seem to mind it. He walked about
and held himself up as though he owned
one-half the town and meant to buy the
other He was ready with his tongue, too
and, if any one said a disagreeable or i'm
pertinent thing, could repay it with interest
Foljambe took a great notion to him, and
told me that the old man was keen and had
wonderfully practical business ideas for one
who had not profited by his precepts, a
thing have observed to be not uncommon
A man can pick up more valuable hints
from the unsuccessful around him than he
can from sharp business men. So the two
grew quite intimate, and almost any fine
evening might be seen IN confab together
on the widows front porch, with the widow
and Rebecca near, interested listeners to
their chat.
This was in August, 1860. The whole coun-
try was in a state of excitement. 1t was
| known that reconciliation between the war
ring Democratic factions was impossible
and that Lincoln would be elected The
question was, would there be ware Fol
jamie suddenly put the plantation in charge
of old Uncle David, and went off South. He
visited Virginia, North Carolina and Geor-
ga and was gone about two months. When
he came back, asked him. "Does theSouth
| roa1Iv tuean Huht Mr. Eoliapha